1. HEVL SPF 50 Face Creme*

I was recently sent this Triple spectrum SPF to try from Skin Shop and it comes in my favourite vampire SPF, factor 50. As I’ve recently said before, I wear factor 50 year round and that’s because I have very fair skin and prone to freckles.

I was intrigued to try this because this sun cream protects against a third harmful ray as well as the usual UVA and UVB, and that’s High Energy Visible Light (HEVL). It’s the lesser known ray but it can be just as harmful as UVA and UVB combined. It’s one of the first skincare products developed in the UK that protects against HEVL and contains prebiotics to strengthen and maintain the skin’s natural barrier. I actually found this sunscreen to be very light wearing and thanks to the skin coloured tint I didn’t look like a ghost.

It’s also 100% vegan and free from my nemesis SLS. It’s currently £19.95 from Skin Shop which I feel is reasonable as I usually pay more for my usual factor 50 face cream.

2. Isle of Paradise Happy Tan Gradual Glow

I didn’t get on with the facial tanning oil from the same company, but I was very impressed with the gradual tan for body. I mainly use it to top up my fake tan on my extremities, as I wash my hands so often, my fake tan disappears here pretty fast so I use this to replace my ususal hand moisturirser. I found the colour to be natural looking and didn’t have that horrid fake tan smell.

3. NATorigin Lengthening Mascara

Yes, I’m still using this and I’m going to continue to praise this mascara forever more because it is the BEST organic and cruelty-free mascara you will EVER use. If you have incredibly sensitive eyes like me then your peepers will thank you for using this. No matter how much you layer up with this mascara it comes off so easily – even with warm water. And during the heatwave it didn’t budge so it stood up to high temperatures really well. It also doesn’t flake or go clumpy like most of the other natural mascaras I’ve used. And if long lashes are your goal then this ticks that box too.

4. ASOS Crayola Mascara and Face Crayon

The ASOS and Crayola collab was something my inner child had dreamed of. I bought the mascara in black and the face crayon in the Nutcracker shade which I’ve used as an eye shadow and eyeliner. For either use you’ll need a primer but I love the summery sheen the nutcracker shade gave my eyes and the mascara performed really well at lengthening my eyelashes.

5. Vita Liberata Self-Tanning Anti-Aging Facial Serum

This is my luxe facial tanning product and my staple for the summer months. I don’t get on too well with using self-tans for the body on my face as I have sensitive skin. This serum when mixed with your face cream builds a natural-looking bronze glow and didn’t leave brown patches around my eyebrows and hairline. It works really well to keep your face moisturised too.

It’s a little pricey but that’s because it’s good. I get mine from Boots, here for £30.00

6. Too Faced Chocolate Gold Eye Shadow Palette

If I could only own one eye shadow palette for the rest of my life it would be this. I’ve always steered towards shimmer eye shadows over matt and this palette has plenty of them. I love the golds, browns and pinks and the coverage is really bold and saturated. With a primer underneath they really pop. And the best bit is that every time you open the palette you’re greeted with a delicious chocolate smell.

This isn’t the type of post I enjoy writing. Especially because one of the products I’m disappointed with from a brand that champions cruelty-free beauty. But I felt compelled to share my experiences with these two products – particularly because one of them has already received rave reviews.

Isle of Paradise’s Self-Tanning Drops

When I saw this luminious liquid on the shelves on the cusp of summer I was so excited. Not only was it £10 cheaper than my usual facial tanning oil but there was a shiny new range too – all of which is cruelty free and vegan! Absolute touch.

I tried these drops for a whole month and applied them as recommended by mixing them in with my usual facial moisturiser. I added 3-4 tiny drops and gently rubbed them in to my face. I was pleased with how quickly my face “tanned”. What I didn’t enjoy was the weird, wishy-washy, almost wood stain effect that kept congregating around my hairline and my eyebrows. Despite me ensuring an even spread of the drops, I would always end up with a patch of brown around any hair follicles. It meant I had to literally scrub at these patches to get rid of them, but even with pressure, these stains weren’t budging.

I was so disappointed that Isle of Paradise didn’t work out for me, especially because the brand is so fresh and utilises organic ingredients. I have got on well with the gradual tan body moisturiser which I use for my hands and feet when I’ve done a full-body tan. So in a way, we’re kind of on OK terms.

I ended up going back to my favourite facial tanning oil which is Vita Liberata, an anti age serum. This is more expensive but doesn’t give me the weird wood stain effect. I love it because there’s no animal derivatives, no parabens and no weird fragrance that you always get with self-tan products.

Superdrug Calm Skin Hydrating 2in1 Serum & Moisturiser

It pains me the most to write negatively about this beauty product.

I always switch up my daily facial moisturiser because I tend to use the more robust and targeted products at night. So when I saw this new 2in1 moisturiser serum from Superdrug at a very purse-friendly price I was super excited.

I can’t applaud Superdrug enough for it’s cruelty-free stance and product range. If I’m ever in doubt about any make-up or skincare you can guarantee that own brand superdrug hasn’t been tested on any bunnies. So it’s a safe choice.

Anyway, I gave this face cream a go for a whole month but it took me a while to work out where these strange white blobs kept appearing from across my face and on my hands. It turns out that every time I was rubbing my face this moisturiser was coming off from the top dermis of my skin and congealing into small blobs which meant that it wasn’t actually penetrating my skin at all. So this meant the ingredients probably weren’t working either. What a shame!

Have you used any of these products? How did you get on?

I’m going to write a post soon about products that I have loved this summer!

Cracked knuckles? Scaling fingers? Dry skin that splits and bleeds? Yep, this is the state my hands are in most of the time thanks to my obsessive hand washing. And the cold weather only makes them worse if I don’t moisturise.

But recently, I’ve found that I can’t use any old moisturiser on my poor hands. Anything with alcohol makes my skin dryer. Sodium Laurel Sulfate is my new nemesis (if it’s in toothpaste my throat gets so sore) and toiletries with a long list of ingredients that I can’t pronounce tends to cause dry patches of skin anywhere they’re applied.

So whilst I’m not going to cut down the number of times I wash my hands during the day because GERMS and lackluster hygiene from those around me, I do need to increase the number of times I apply hand moisturiser. Especially now that the cold weather has set in.

I’ve recently tried out Defensil which has been developed in the Swiss Alps to combat extremely dry skin experienced by those living at high altitudes as well as for those who suffer from eczema. I tend to find that anything that’s been developed to moisturise skin that’s exposed to rugged conditions is usually pretty tough so I was keen to give this a go.

I’ve been using Defensil for a few weeks now and whilst I’m not going to say it’s a miracle cure, because any natural cream that I use on a regular basis keeps dryness under control, it has been soothing and quickly stopped dry skin spell turning into sores. AS LONG AS I’M STRINGENT WITH APPLYING IT.

The cream was created by Swiss scientists to help lock in moisture for winter skin prone to dryness and flaking, it contains a lot more natural ingredients than it does artificial, so I’m happy to continue using it. Doctors try to throw hydrocortisone creams at you as soon as you mention ‘dry skin’ which I’ve shied away from because they’re not safe for long term use.

However, efficacy trials against the standard hydrocortisone creams found that Defensil decreased skin sensitivity by almost 50% and skin dryness by 35% just 15 minutes after application. So if you’re looking to replace or cut down on your steroid cream, this could be an effective alternative.